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MacOS: How to Add or Remove Fonts

You can download fonts from sites like Google Fonts. What do you do with them once you download them though? If you want to use new fonts in your MacOS applications, you can install and enable them using these steps.

Option 1 – Open Font File

Font files will typically come with the extension of “ttf”, “otf”, or “ps”. You can install fonts by simply opening the file. Once opened, a window will appear where you can select “Install Font“.

Selecting “Install Font” will place it in the ~/Library/Fonts folder where it will be available for the single user to use.

Option 2 – Drag & Drop to Folder

You can directly drag and drop font files depending on the situation for which you intend to use the fonts.

Drag the font files to one of the following locations:

~/Library/Fonts = Fonts a specific user can use.

/Library/Fonts = Fonts available to any user on the system.

/Network/Library/Fonts = Fonts made available to users on the network.

/System/Library/Fonts = Fonts used by the MacOS system. Don’t mess with these too much unless you know what you’re doing.

/System Folder/Fonts = Legacy location for fonts for applications built for older versions of MacOS.

Who’s Behind Technipages?

My name is Mitch Bartlett. I've been working in technology for over 20 years in a wide range of tech jobs from Tech Support to Software Testing. I started this site as a technical guide for myself and it has grown into what I hope is a useful reference for all.